Dust-separator.



A. WOLF. DUST SEPARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 27, 1910.

1,025,730. Patented May 7, 1912-.

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A. WOLF. DUST SEPARATOR. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 27 1910.

Patented May 7,1912.

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AUGUSTUS WOLF, 0F CHAMBERSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

DUST-SEPARATO'R.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May '7, 1912.

Application filed September 27, 1910. Serial No. 584,053.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, AUGUSTUS WOLF, a citizenof the United States, and a resident of Chambersburg, Franklin county,Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Dust-Separators, ofwhich the following is a specification.

One object of my invention is to provide a machine of a novelconstructionparticularly designed to completely and efficiently separatedust and other foreign material from grain; it being especially desiredthat the machine shall be capable of rapid operation, shall be simple inconstruction, and of such a design as will permit it to repeatedly usethe air employed for its operation. These objects and other advantageousends I secure as hereinafter set forth, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in

which Figure 1, is a side elevation of a machine constructed accordingto my invention; Fig. 2, is a perspective view, on a somewhat enlargedscale, illustrating the receiving hopper with its cooperating parts;Fig. 3, is a side elevation of the adjustable weight or counterbalancefor the hopper valve, and; Figs. 4 and 5 are vertical sections on thelines AA and B-B, Fig, 1.

In the above drawings, 1 represents the frame of the machine on which issupported a casing 2 divided by a suitable partition into two parts 3and 4. Extending longitudinally of the casing at the lower portionthereof is a conveyer trough 5 communicating with the compartment 4, asillustrated in Fig. 4, and containing a screw or other suitable conveyer6.

Mounted in bearings on the frame, and extending through the casing, is adriving shaft 7 on one end of which is mounted a pulley 8 to which poweris applied for operating the machine. Through a pulley 9 on the shaft 7,a belt 10 and a second pulley 11 on the shaft of the conveyer 6, poweris transmitted from said shaft 7 to drive said conveyer, whichdischarges through a normally closed sp ing pressed valve 12 into ahollow casting 1 to which may be connected any desired receptacle fordust.

Mounted adjacent the casing 2 is a shaking shoe 14 consisting of an opentopped box-like structure having a hopper bot-tom over which is mountedan inclined screen 15 terminating at and discharging into a tailingtrough 16. In order that the grain may be caused to flow through theshoe 14, this is mounted on spring straps 50 and provided with a bracket51 connected through a rod 52 with an eccentric strap operative on aneccentric'53 fixed to the shaft 7 From the hopper bottom under thescreen 15, a spout 17 leads into the hopper 18 of the separator casingand this hopper is constructed as shown in Fig. 2;that is to say, itconsists of a closed box projecting from one side of thecompartment 3and provided with an opening 19 in one side for the reception of thespout 17 The bottom of this structure is formed by apivoted valve 20normally held closed by an arm 21 having a weight 22 threaded upon it soas to permit of its accurate adjustment; it being possible to thus setsaid valve so that it will open only when a predetermined amount ofmaterial rests upon it and will automatically return to its closedposition when said material is removed. From the bottom of the hopperstructure 18 an inclined chute 23 leads through a suitable opening inthe side of the compartment 3 into an air trunk 24 formed by the casing2 and a partition 25; this trunk extending up one side of theco1npartment 3, across the top, and down the other side thereof where itopens into a chamber 26 communicating through an opening 27 with thecompartment 4.

In order to regulate the flow of air through the trunk 24, I place atits discharge end a pivoted or other valve 27 capable of being adjustedby means of a bolt 28 connected to it and extending outside of thecompartment 3 where its end is threaded and provided with a thumb nut29. By drawing said bolt in or out, the position of the valve may bevaried from that shown in full lines to that shown in dotted lines andthe air flow correspondingly varied. The bottom 30 of the chamber 26 isinclined at an angle of about 45 to the horizontal and terminates in adischarge spout 31 having an automatic, normally closed valve 32. Underthis chamber 26 is a second chamber 33 connecting with the intake of thetrunk 24 and also through an opening 34 with a settling chamber 35 inthe compartment 4.

An inclined partition 36 is extended under the intakeend of the trunk 24immediately below the opening from the hopper chute 23 and thispartition is continued outside of the casing as a spout 37; there beingprovided two valves 38 and 39 designed to normally remain closed butcapable of being opened by a predetermined weight of grain or othermaterial pressing against them.

In the compartment 4 is mounted a fan 40 fixed to and driven from theshaft 7 and surrounded by a casing 41 constituting a fan inclosure.through a tangentially placed outlet 42 with a settling chamber 35 andsaid chamber has its floor or lowermost portion formed by a curved wall43 arranged eccentrically to the shaft 7 and extending from the outerportion of the outlet 42 downwardly and over to the edge of the conveyertrough 5, where it terminates. Immediately above and substantiallyparallel with this wall is a similarly curved partition 44 extending soas to form a narrow conduit having the width of the compartment 4 andleading from the outlet 42 of the fan casing to the conveyer trough 5.The lower end of this partition terminates over the trough 5 so that anymaterial falling upon it will ultimately drop into the said trough. Thepassage of air into the trough is limited by a valve 45 extending acrossthe bottom of the compartment 4 and adjustable as to the distancebetween its free end and the partition 44 as indicated in dotted linesin Fig. 4. In order to balance the side pull on the shaft 7 due to theshaking shoe 14 when the device is working, I mount a balance or flywheel 54 on said shaft adjacent said eccentric.

Under operative conditions the turning of the shaft not only operatesthe fan, but, through the eccentric 53 gives a vibratory motion to theshaking shoe 14 and through the belt 10 drives the conveyer 6. If thevarious valves are properly adjusted and grain to be cleaned is suppliedto the shoe 14, any large pieces of foreign material or particles ofchaff are shaken down the screen 15 into the tailing spout 16, while thegrain passes through said screen into the chute 17. From this it isdelivered into the hopper 18 andafter a certain amount has accumulatedon the valve 20, it overbalances the weighted arm 21 so that the valve20 moves downwardly and permits said grain to slide through the chute 23into the upper portion of the trunk 24. The fan 40 is so turned that airis driven from the casing 41 through the outlet 42, thence into thesettling chamber 35 through the opening 34, into the compartment 3, intoand through the trunk 24 to the chamber 26 and thence through theopening 27 into the fan casing As a consequence, the grain falling intothe trunk 24 meets a rising current of air which effectively removesfrom it any particles of dust or dirt while permitting the cleaned grainto fall onto the partition This casing communicates.

36 and flow from time to time into and through the spout 37 past thevalves 38 and 39. The dust and other like material taken from the grainis carried up, across and finally down through the trunk 24 into thechamber 26, where the heavier particles, owing to the slowing down ofthe air cur- .rent, fall onto the incline 4 and pass to the spout 31.The lighter impalpable dust particles continue, however, through theopening 27 into the fan casing 40 where they are given a rapid whirlingmotion and finally discharged with the air through the outlet 42. Owing,however, to the fact that the dust is heavier than the air, theparticles under the action of centrifugal force, move in that portion ofthe air current farthest from the center of the fan and by far thegreater portion of them are caused to enter the conduit formed by thewall 33 and the partition 44, especially as this is curved away from andin continuation of the outlet 42.

Partly under the action of gravity and partly due to their momentum andthe air current flow, such particles of dust are moved through thisconduit and finally discharged into the conveyer trough 5, from whencethey are delivered from time to time past the valve 12 into thedischarge bowl 13. The greater volume of the air coming from the fancasing 40 passes from the outlet 42 into the settling chamber 45 whereits velocity is greatly diminished and the lightest particles of dustpermitted to fall on the upper surface of the partition 44, from whichthey are finally delivered into the conveyer trough 5 under the valve45. The air from the settling chamber 45 flows into the chamber 33 ofthe compartment 3 and thence into the trunk 24 as above described. Owingto the arrangement of the valves and by reason of their automaticaction, there is practically no escape of air from my machine during itsoperation, since all of said valves open only long enough to admitmaterial or to discharge the same, and close as soon as such materialhas passed them.

I claim The combination in a dust separator, of a casing having twovertically extended compartments arranged side by side; an air trunkextending up one side, across the top and down the opposite side of onecompartment; means for feeding material to be cleaned into the ascendingpart of said trunk; an outlet chute heaving an extension projectingunder but spaced away from the said ascending part of the trunk; asecond outlet chute having an inclined extension projecting under butspaced away from the lower end of the descending part of the trunk; saidextension passing across the compartment to the ascending part of thetrunk; a fan in the second compartment name to this specification, inthe presence having its intake connected to the space deof twosubscribing Witnesses. fined by said latter extension and the air trunk;and a casing surrounding the fan AUGUSTUS L 5 and opening into a part ofthe second com- Witnesses:

partment below said inclined extension. WILLIAM E. BRADLEY,

In testimony whereof, I have signed my WM. A. BARR.

Copies 01' this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

